Through the years the advancements in medical knowledge and treatment of illnesses has likewise brought about tremendous increases in the use of various types of hypodermic needles, either for inoculations, transfusions, or blood sampling.
It is quite clear the hypodermic needles are very often associated with some form of disease or illness present in the blood system of a patient, for example, and as a result, the needles are then contaminated with infectious material. An inadvertent penetration of the skin of the medical technician handling the medical equipment would then very easily result in a serious infection with the same disease for which the patient is being treated.
The danger in handling contaminated, or potentially contaminated, medical equipment has been recognized for many years, and many attempts have been made to eliminate such danger completely, and provide people in the medical professions with safe means for handling any contaminated equipment.
Not only are medical technicians exposed to danger in handling hypodermic needles, but other familiar medical instruments, such as various kinds of scalpels, are commonly contaminated, and must be handled very carefully. Generically, in the medical profession, all of the sharp medical instruments, are referred to as "sharps".
For use, the medical technician handles the "sharp" with one hand, there is customarily no need to grasp a hypodermic syringe or a scalpel with both hands. Then, in disposing of the needle or scalpel, it is most often considered safest to construct a disposal system in which the "sharp" need be manipulated with only one hand while being discarded. Otherwise, for example, in disposing of a hypodermic needle, the syringe might be held in one hand while the needle is being removed from a non-disposable syringe with the other hand; or, a disposable needle and syringe, or scalpel, might be held in one hand while a disposal container is held open with the other hand.
Thus, preferably, the hand not needed for any assistance during disposal should be completely out of the way to avoid accidental contamination.
The prior art reveals different forms of disposal systems for "sharps", among which are the following U.S. Pat. Nos. which I had found:
______________________________________ U.S. Pat. No. 3,876,067 Schwarz April 8, 1975 U.S. Pat. No. 4,380,292 Cramer April 19, 1983 U.S. Pat. No. 4,804,090 Schuh et al Feb. 14, 1989 U.S. Pat. No. 4,848,569 Leishman July 18, 1989 U.S. Pat. No. 4,890,734 Gach Jan. 2, 1990 U.S. Pat. No. 4,919,264 Shinall April 24, 1990 ______________________________________
U.S. Pat. No. 3,876,067 to Schwarz describes a collection box for syringe needles after use. The box contains a filling of disinfectant material. The upper portion is provided with a multiplicity of openings. For disposal a syringe is pressed slightly through one of the openings so that a head of the needle is deformed enough to pass through an opening and is caught behind a wall of an opening. The syringe may then be pulled loose of the needle.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,380,292 to Cramer describes a needle receptable which includes a base supporting an outer case in which a foam block rests. A contaminated needle is injected into the foam block, and when sufficient needles are injected into the foam block, the block is removed from the case and disposed of.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,804,090 to Schuh et al describes a disposal system for contaminated instruments comprising a device for transporting the instruments to a disposal container, The transporting device comprises a small cup with a grid-like cover. The cup is partially filled with styrofoam material into which used needles are inserted. The disposal container is a large receptacle having a paddle wheel mounted in the lid beneath a hinged door through which needles are dropped onto the paddle wheel. The paddle wheel is rotated so that the needles fall into the container.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,848,569 to Leishman describes a disposal apparatus for contaminated needles comprising a magazine structure provided with a plurality of small shield components. A lengthwise channel provides access to each shield. After use, a contaminated needle is inserted into the uppermost shield and the shield is removed from the magazine for further disposal.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,890,734 to Gach describes a disposable holder which includes a plurality of retaining orifices and a plurality of disposal orifices. Initially, a needle capped in its sheath is inserted into a retaining orifice. The needle is removed from its sheath for use leaving the sheath in the retaining orifice. After use, a needle and sheath may be removed from the retaining orifice and inserted into a disposal orifice for disposal into the storage location. The storage holder and the contents may be disposed of entirely.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,919,264 to Shinall describes a medical needle removing and disposing system comprising a box having a plurality of tubular chambers. Each tubular chamber contains a plastic substance such as a flower clay into which a used needle is inserted. The upper end of each tubular chamber has a specialized shape designed to assist in removing the needle from the sheath.